Liquid-separator.



F. G. B'.LEY.

LIQUID SEARATOR.

AFPLIGATION Mmm Aram, 1909.

Patented July 1, 1913.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

wi? a F. G. EPPLEY.

LIQUID SEPARATOR.

APPLICATION FILED Ammo, 1909.

1,066,393, Patented July 1, 1913.

3 SHEETS-'SHEET 2.

www QM# P. G. EPPLEY.

LIQUID SEPARATOR.

APPLICATION FILED Ammo, 1909.

1,066,398. Patented July 1, 1913.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

. openings UNTTED sTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

FRANCIS G. EPPLEY, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 ALBAUGILDOVER O0., 0I' CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION '0F ILLINOIS.

LIQUID-SEPARATOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application' filed April 10, 1909.

patented-July 1, 191s. Serial No. 489,028.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANCIS-G. ErrnEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of-Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Liquid-Separators, of which the following, taken in connection with the drawings, is a description.

This invention relates to the improvements in the vgeneral construction of liquid separators, more especially of that class known as cream separators, but may, however, be used in separating other liquids of different specific gravities.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a bowl having vertically arranged wings therein, and a cover' for said bowl provided with -milk and cream discharge in the neck portion thereof, through which the skim milk andr'ream is passed after having been separated by the mechanism hereinafter described.

Another object of my invention is to provide a flexible bearing case in .which is supported the spindle carrying the skimming bowl, so arranged that the bowl is automatically maintained in perfect alinement during the operation of the machine.

A further object of my invention is `to provide a construction whereby the whole milk is introduced into the bowl and during the skimming process the liquid is traveling upwardly discharging the skimmed milk and the cream from the neck of the cover of the bowl.

Other objects and features of advantage in the use of my invention will be hereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

Various modifications in detail relating to the different parts of the machine will suggest themselves to persons skilled in the construction and use of this class of machinery; but my invention is not limited in these regards, and the forms illust-rated are but embodiments of the invention.

In the `accompanying drawings consisting of three sheets Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of my invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken through the skimming bowl, wings and cover, on line 2-2 of Fig. 4; Fig. 3 is a view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow; Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 2; Fig. .5 is an enlarged end view of the tube extending through the bowl; Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the cream screw; Fig. 7 is a detail of the flexible bearing and case ;A Fig. 8 is a Viewv taken on line 8-8'0 2.

Referring to the drawings A represents a base or sup ort from which rises a casing A which inc oses the gearing and supports the skimmingA apparatus. Secured to the wall of the casing A is a casting a, which formsthe gear nest and supports the driving mechanism. The outer casing A is arranged at one side thereof to support the upper part of theagear nest within a neck portion A, the extension C2 fitting inside thereof and being held in position by a single pin or screw A3.

a is the bearing in .which is mounted the lower end of the driving Shaft B. This shaft eirtends vertically to the top of 'the casing A and carries, therein a beveled gear a2 which meshes with the gear a3, which is operated by any suitable source of power, in lthis instance a crank B.

B2 is the vertical shaft mounted in bearings a, a, supported inside the casing A', carrying the gear b and pinion b which latter meshes with the gear b2 on the sha-ft B. B3 i-s also a vertically disposed shaft, the lower end thereof resting in the bearing b3 and the upper end thereof interlocking with the spindle C. Screw threaded upon the extension C2 is a flexible bearing case C3, the top of which is concave, as at c, Fig. 7, beneath which is an inwardly extending circumferential shoulder c. A flexible bearing bushing C4 extends into the case CB having upon one end thereof a shoulder c2 which abuts against and engages the shoulder c and is held to its position by a coiled spring c which seats against said shoulder 02 and against the upper part of the casting C2. This bushing allows a slight lateral movement in the casing, the tension of the spring keeping it in alinement, and maintaining the spindle C in an upright position. The spindle C engages the shaft B3 at B4 and when it is desired to remove the bowl it is simply raised out of the flexible bearing.

Supported above the upwardly extending portion D is the casing A and surrounding the bearing case C3 is the supporting frame D for the skimming bowl C. This frame D" may also be secured to the main casing A as lat D2 to give it strength and rigidity.

Rising from the center of the bottom of the bowl C' (Fig. 2) an exteriorly screw threaded boss to which is secured the feed pipe E, which extends to the top of the vertically pivoted wings e5. This pipe E has a` plurality of ribs e extending from the top thereof to the enlarged ,portion e at. the base. The enlargedportion e' extends over the base l and has through the bottom thereof the openings c2 communicating from t-lie interior of said tube to the bowl C.

Surroundingr the enlarged portion' e at the base of the feed pipeE is a perforated disk c3' and surrounding the top of said tube E is a. coller c, and pivot-ally secured tothe top of said collar e4 and at the bottom of the disk `e3 are the wingsef, which are supported mediate of their length by the rings es, e7. These wings are curved (Fig. 4) and extend tangentially around the axis of the bowl, nesting together as shown, .with their concave sides turned in the direction the bowl rotates. i A remov. ble cover F, cone shaped at the liottoiii thereof, tits over the top of the bowl (1. 'llie base of thiscoveiis provided with a [lange f, which rests upon the top of the bowl C" (Fig. 2). The base of the cover F is provided with a circumferential groove f which receives a packing' ring, and when in position rests upon the abutment f2 near the top of the bowl C, The base of the cover extending inside of the bowl and beneath the packing ring is of sutliciently smaller diameter to permit the passage of the skim milk from the bowl to the discharge tubes .51, g, leading to the outlets G, G. These tubes are arranged upon the under side of the cone and discharge into the neck F2, as

"shown more clearly in Fig.V 3. At the point of the discharge into the neck F2 is an integrally formed collar f3 having a smaller diameter than the neck F. Formed upon .the insid of the neck, and extending up.-

wardly from the collar fare the ribs f* vwhich rise above an opening through theV shoulder F. A. cream screw H fits into this opening and may be adjusted nearer to or farther from the axis of rotation. This screw H is provided with a central opening L and has. upon .ffthe inner face thereof a coneshaped recess h' through which the cream passes to the disehargeforitice.

F is a neck formed integrally; wit-h the cone-shaped portion of the cover land rises upwardly therefrom. A shoulder F2 extends around the neck approximately mediate of t-he length thereof, and arranged above this shoulder is the pan G2 receiving the skim milk, and below the shoulder is the pan G3 receiving thecrcam.

'Extending through the neck of the cover is a tube H exteriorly screw threaded upon the lower end thereof` and having a circumferential shoulder h2 which rests upon the collar f3. The interior of the tube. E is screw tlfreaded at the top thereof to receive the tube H', and when secured in position as shown in Fig. 2 securely locks together the cover F and the' bowl C.

Suitably supported above the bowl C is the supply receptacle I, having a discharge pipe i controlled by a valve i2, throughv which the whole milk flows to the feed pipe H', the supplythereof being regulated also by the float I', which automatically closes the passage tothe tube when the "desired amount of milk liasgpassed `into the separator. V i

The operation ofthe `machine is as follows: The parts of the skimming bowl are all assembled-as shown in Fig. 2, the milk is fed through the tubes H. and E to the bottom of thc bowl C' when it rises through the perforations in the disk e inthespaces between the wings e5. The vbowl is being revolved at a very high rate of speed, which tends to throw the outer free edges of the wings c5 against the inside of the bowl C which forms a compartment between each wing and the one next 'to it. Thejmilk passes over-,thc corrugations formed" in the wings,'the heavier particles traveling away from the axis of rotationand upwardly -along the `wall of the bowl to theopenings g in the cover through which it isI discharged into the chamber J in the neck of .the bowl, flows into the pan G2 and is discharged through the spout G. The lighter cream particles travel toward the center of rotation and pass along the outside of the tube E in the open spaecsbetween the ribs e under the collar f3 in the neck F2, and from thence through the opening` in said collar between the ribs l4 to' the discharge orifice l1. in the,A cream screw H and into fthereceptacle G3 from which it is discharged through the spout G. The bowl may easily be removed from its bearing by removing the pans G2, G3, and by means of a key engaging the tube H the cover is unlocked and removed, when the bowl may be lifted out of its bearing. The -feed tube E is disengaged from the bowl by unscrewing and withdrawn with the wings e5. f

The driving mechanism being contained within the gear nest may be removed by loosening the pin or screw A3 allowing it to beco'me separat-ed from the casing A with but one adjustment.

I claim: l

l. In a liquid separator t-lie combination of a casing, a separator bowl mounted upon a spindle, a liexible bearing permitting a slight lateral movement of the spindle, a.

feed tube in said bowl and detachably se- .125

through and having a shoulder abutting against said rst named sho-ulder, the end 0f said tube engaging the first tube and locking the cover to the bowl, and mecha- .nisin for imparting a centrifugal movement to said bowl, substantially as described.

2. In a liquid separator, the combination of a casing, a flexible bearing, a separator bowl supported upon a spindlel mounted in said bearing, a feed tube in said 'bowl and detachably secured to the bottom thereof, corrugated blades pivotally mounted at their inner edges and extending tangent-ially around the axis of said bowl, a cone shaped cover having a hollow neck portion, a tube extending through said neck portion and interlocking with the first named feed tube to secure the cover in position, ribs forming a cream channel upon the inside of the neck of the cover, a screw having a cone shaped orifice extending through the wall of said neck at the top of the channel, said cover having a plurality of milk discharge orifices formed integrally therewith extending `from the neck thereof to the inner edge of its base, mechanism for imparting a centrifugal movement to said bowl to separate and discharge the liquids of different specific gravity, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

' FRANCIS G. EPPLEY.

Witnesses:

A. F. YoGGY, E. C. Mn'rzenn. 

